Virginia Button

concise introduction to the artist's life and work, written by an established expert on British modern art. Includes a biographical overview and shorter chapters explore key aspects of her work in more depth.

Lucian Freud (1922 - 2011) was one of the most influential artists of his generation. Hailed as the 'greatest living realist painter', Freud's commitment to realism, and particularly to the human figure, was often controversial. Always creating debate, Freud consistently addressed questions of human existence and perception, testing, through a sustained practice of looking, the possibility of knowing and recording human individuality. In this brand new survey of the artist's life and work, Virginia Button introduces us to one of the twentieth century's most important artists. The book is organised in seven thematic chapters -- covering the whole span of Freud's life and work: Chapter One: Commitment to Looking Chapter Two: Commitment to Painting Chapter Three: The Studio: Proximity and Reflective Distance Chapter Four: The Naked Portrait Chapter Five: The Artist's Eye: Freud and the Old Masters Chapter Six: Time and Reality: Freud's Significance and Legacy

Ben Nicholson (1894-1982) was one of the greatest British artists of the twentieth century, first coming to international prominence with his famous 'white reliefs' of the 1930s. A pioneer of abstract art in Britain, he played a significant role in the European avantgarde, forming close links with Picasso, Braque, Arp, Mondrian and others. At the same time he had a strong sense of tradition, maintaining a life-long attachment to landscape and still-life forms. Central to the establishment of a modernist art community in St Ives, Nicholson's importance as a disseminator of international avant-garde ideas in Britain cannot be overstated. His career spanned more than 60 years and embraced carved reliefs, paintings, drawings and prints. Virginia Button's engaging, fully illustrated survey provides a detailed examination of Nicholson's life and work in St Ives, giving a thorough introduction as well as new insights into the evolving practice of this major artist over a period of six decades.